Slider of Equestria
by DoctorFlashSfD
Summary: What happens when you throw a person with the power to travel between dimensions and gain all sorts of interesting abilities into the land of Equestria? Well, read this to find out as Hunter travels through this magical world, makes new friends, fights fearsome enemies, and learns about the true meaning of friendship from a very valuable teacher. Rated T for safety, but more K
1. Chapter 1: A New World, part 1

Slider of Equestria: Vol. 1

By DoctorFlashSfD

Chapter 1: A New World, part 1

 **Disclaimer: I don't own My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic or any of the shows I'll be making references to in this fanfic series. Rights to anything referenced all belong to their respective owners.**

In a small house in a small town, a young man was sitting on his floor in a meditative position. To those who didn't know, he may have looked like he had fallen asleep, but he was actually focusing inwardly. The young man suddenly groaned loudly, and jumped up.

"I can't focus!" he shouted, and headed towards his kitchen. He poured himself a glass of milk, and chugged the white liquid down in five big gulps. He wiped off the resulting milk moustache, and decided to see what was on TV before trying again. He flopped down onto his couch, and started flipping channels, thinking.

 _There's got to be an easier way to focus_ , he thought. _If I don't get ahold of this, who knows what world I'll end up in next_. The young man, known as Hunter, wasn't a normal person. He had a strange and wonderful ability. He had the power to travel between dimensions, and as such, he could travel through the multiverse with ease. Such people were referred to as 'sliders'. However, to travel to a completely new universe for the first time required absolute focus. In contrast, travelling to a different space in the same universe or to a previously visited universe was as easy as walking down the street.

Hunter was still trying to clear his head, when he raised an eyebrow at the show he came across.

"My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic? Isn't that, like, for 7-year-old girls?" he said, about to turn it off, then noticed it was telling a story. He decided to listen to it, then try to focus again.

 _Once upon a time, in the magical land of Equestria, there were two regal sisters who ruled together and created harmony for all the land._

 _To do this, the eldest used her unicorn powers to raise the sun at dawn; the younger brought out the moon to begin the night. Thus, the two sisters maintained balance for their kingdom and their subjects, all the different types of ponies._

 _But as time went on, the younger sister became resentful. The ponies relished and played in the day her elder sister brought forth, but shunned and slept through her beautiful night_

 _One fateful day, the younger unicorn refused to lower the moon to make way for the dawn. The elder sister tried to reason with her, but the bitterness in the young one's heart had transformed her into a wicked mare of darkness, Nightmare Moon._

Hunter found himself on the edge of his seat as a flash of lightning went off. Then he felt it, a strange energy deep in his gut was calling to him, telling him something was very wrong. He meditated as the narrator went on:

 _She vowed that she would shroud the land in eternal night. Reluctantly, the elder sister harnessed the most powerful magic known to ponydom, the Elements of Harmony. Using the magic of the Elements of Harmony, she defeated her younger sister, and banished her permanently in the moon._

Hunter finally latched onto the energy, and felt it suddenly engulf his whole body. He opened his eyes and looked at himself. He was becoming transparent. He suddenly stood up, and knew what he had to do. He grabbed his emergency bag which he always kept packed, and as the narrator finished, transitioning into another voice, he made a sliding motion across the floor, fading out of his world, and entering another, hearing the pony's voice still as he came out:

 _The elder sister took on responsibility for both sun and-_

"-moon, and harmony has been maintained in Equestria for generations since," the pony's voice finished. Hunter still hadn't fully appeared yet, but he could hear everything around the spot where he would appear, just as he had all the previous times he had slid into a new world. The voice continued, obviously female. She seemed to be talking to herself, "Hmm, Elements of Harmony. I know I've heard of those before, but where?"

Hunter's sight came to him, and he moved to behind a large clump of bushes, out of sight of the purple-coated unicorn pony who laid on the grass, reading an old looking book. Now she was gazing at the sky, deep in thought. Hunter faded into view fully, looking solid once more, and looked around. He facepalmed, realizing where he was.

"I'm in Equestria. Why did I have to end up here?" he whispered to himself. Suddenly, he heard hooves galloping away. He looked up, and saw the purple pony galloping off. He decided to follow her, and pulled out a small silver bottle. He took a small sip, and he and his things vanished. It was an invisibility potion from his brief visit to Skyrim. He hurried after the pony as fast as he could without making too much sound. He nearly ran into her when she was stopped by three other strangely colored ponies (all of whom were unicorns) who were asking if she was coming to some kind of party or something.

"Oh, sorry, girls… I've got a lot of studying to catch up on," she said, but Hunter could tell she was lying. She hurried off again, and Hunter ran right after her. The potion he had drunk from was good for five minutes of use, then he would need to take another gulp. He knew magic was possible in this world, but he didn't know to what extent. As he ran along, up a long stairway, he tried powering up an invisibility spell, and was pleased to see that it worked. He cast the spell, and not a moment too soon. The potion wore off just then, but he was still invisible thanks to the spell, which lasted until he turned it off, as long as he had plenty of energy. Finally, the pony stopped, bursting through a door, but Hunter nearly ran into her because of this, and managed to avoid this by leaping high over her, and discovering he had his old flight powers back from when he visited Peter Pan.

"Spike! Spi-ike!" the pony yelled. "Spike?" she said again, looking around.

"Oww," a voice groaned, and Hunter noticed a small, lizardlike creature with purple scales and green spines coming up a flight of stairs, with a present wrapped in red impaled on his tail.

"There you are," the pony asked, not bothering to ask if he was okay. She then said, "Quick, find me that old copy of _Predictions and Prophecies_." Then she saw the gift on Spike's tail.

"What's that for?" she asked. Spike noticed it, and pulled it off.

"Well," he started, looking a little upset. "It _was_ a gift for Moondancer, but…" he trailed off as he shook it a bit, and an impaled teddy bear fell out.

"Oh Spike, you know we don't have time for that sort of thing," the pony said. Hunter was starting to like her less and less.

"But we're on a break," Spike protested. The pony began the search, levitating books down to her. So apparently unicorns can use magic in this world. She called for Spike again, and he held out the book she wanted. Using her magic, she pulled it down, and Spike with it, causing him to faceplant. Hunter nearly laughed.

The pony levitating the book to a stand, and rifling through the pages. Finally, she found the page she wanted.

"Aha! Elements of Harmony, see: _Mare in the Moon_?" she said, questioning the last part.

"The Mare in the Moon? But that's just an old ponies' tale," Spike said, attempting to put away all of the other books. The pony flipped through the book again, and from what she read when she found it, Hunter guessed that the Mare in the Moon must be Nightmare Moon. Apparently the pony thought the same, because she seemed scared.

"Take a note please, to the princess," she said, and Spike pulled out a piece of parchment and a quill, writing as the pony dictated, "My dearest teacher, my continuing studies of pony magic have led me to discover that we are on the precipice of disaster."

"Hold on," Spike said, "Preci-, preci-?"

"Threshold," the pony tried.

"Threh-"

"Uh, brink?" Spike just looked confused.

"Ugh, that something really bad is about to happen!" the pony said, and Spike wrote that down as the pony went on, "For you see, the mythical Mare in the Moon is in fact Nightmare Moon, and she's about to return to Equestria, and bring with her eternal night! Something must be done to make sure this terrible prophecy does not come true. I await your quick response. Your faithful student, Twilight Sparkle."

"Twilight Sparkle! Got it," Spike finished. Twilight told him to send it, and after some reluctance, he finally did. Hunter had a bad feeling in his gut about this. He figured he may as well show himself at this point. He was about to, then Spike belched, and a scroll formed from the ensuing green flames. Spike unrolled it and read off, "My dearest, most faithful student Twilight. You know I value your diligence, and that I trust you completely."

Twilight looked happy, then Spike went on, "But you simply must stop reading those dusty old books!" Twilight seemed to be knocked down a peg. Hunter smiled to himself, and decided to show himself later.

-Later-

After a while, and a flying chariot ride for Twilight and Spike with Hunter flying along behind, still invisible, they arrived at a little town that Spike called Ponyville.

Real _creative name,_ Hunter thought. Apparently, the Summer Sun Celebration was being held there, and Twilight was also tasked with making some friends. Twilight didn't look too happy, and that didn't change until they got to the first place on Spike's checklist: Sweet Apple Acres.

"Yee haw!" a voice with a distinct Southern drawl cried out, and an orange-coated pony with a blond mane and a Stetson (cowboy hat) ran past, and bucked a large apple tree, making every apple in it fall out into the baskets around its base. The pony crossed her legs proudly. Twilight sighed, and went up to her.

"Hi, my name's Twilight Sparkle-" she was cut off as the other pony grabbed her hoof with both of her own and shook it hard like a person would shake another one's hand.

"Well, howdy-doo, Miss Twilight, a pleasure makin' your acquaintance. I'm Applejack," she said. "We here at Sweet Apple Acres sure do like makin' new friends."

Twilight, now looking a little dizzy, said, "Friends? Actually I-"

"So," Applejack went on as if Twilight hadn't said a word, "what can I do you for?" Hunter nearly cracked up when he saw that Twilight's foreleg was still waving up and down, even though Applejack had let go. Spike stopped it, and the two ponies discussed the banquet preparations, and Applejack asked if Twilight wanted to sample some of the food.

"As long as it doesn't take too long," Twilight answered, and Applejack rang a triangle nearby.

"SOUP'S ON, EVERYPONY!" Applejack yelled, and a regular mob of other multicolored ponies raced by, a big red stallion with a yoke around his neck nearly knocking into Hunter. Hunter learned a bit later during Applejack's introduction of everyone, who all seemed to be cousins to her, that his name was Big MacIntosh. He, a little filly named Apple Bloom, and an old mare named Granny Smith seemed to be the only ones who seemed to be directly related to Applejack. Twilight was about to leave, and so was Hunter, then they heard Apple Bloom ask, "Aren't you gonna stay for brunch?"

She was giving the puppy eyes, and Twilight seemed about to break, but then she said, "Sorry, but we have an awful lot to do…" The whole family sighed in disappointment.

"Fine," Twilight said, and they all cheered. The brunch took a while, but Hunter was able to sneak some food for himself while no one was looking, which is harder than you think. It was all delicious. Twilight groaned as they went to check the weather.  
"I ate too much pie," she said, and her belly sagged.  
"Hmm, there's supposed to be a Pegasus pony named Rainbow Dash clearing the clouds," Spike said, looking up. Hunter and Twilight did, too.  
"Well, she's not doing a very good job, is she?" Twilight commented, then a bluish something slammed into her, knocking her into a mud puddle nearby. It was a blue-coated Pegasus with a rainbow colored mane and tail. She looked at Twilight, and laughed a bit.  
"Um, 'scuse me?" she said, then giggled a bit. Then she flew off, and brought down a dark cloud. After hopping a few times, it rained all over Twilight, washing the mud off, but now she was soaking wet. Hunter nearly busted up. This world was more interesting than he thought.  
"Oops, I guess I overdid it. Uh, um, how 'bout this?" she said, then flew in a circle around Twilight so fast that it formed a mini-tornado which dried up all of the water and the mud with it.

"My very own patented Rain-Blow Dry! No no, don't thank me, you're quite welcome," she said, then looked at Twilight. She looked angry, and her mane and tail were now frizzy and curly, and sticking out just about everywhere. Rainbow Dash snickered, then busted out laughing, and so did Spike. Hunter did too, but he kept his laugh mostly silent.

Twilight looked down at her, and said, "Let me guess. _You're_ Rainbow Dash?"

" _The_ one and only!" she said, standing up and doing a pose, then lifting off and hovering with her muzzle nearly touching Twilight's.  
"Why, you heard of me?" she asked, smiling.  
Twilight then said, "I _heard_ you're supposed to be keeping the sky clear. My name's Twilight Sparkle, and the Princess sent me to check on the weather."  
Rainbow Dash then waved her off, going on to tell her that she was practicing for something called the Wonderbolts, who apparently were going to perform at the celebration, and Rainbow Dash wanted to use the opportunity to show off. According to what Twilight said, they were the most talented fliers in all of Equestria.  
"Please, they'd never accept a Pegasus who can't even keep the sky clear for one measly day," Twilight said, scoffing.  
"Hey! I could clear this sky in ten seconds flat!" Rainbow Dash said, sounding a lot like she was bragging in Hunter's view.  
"Prove it," Twilight said, narrowing her eyes. Rainbow Dash then flew off. Sure enough, ten seconds later, the sky was an unobstructed field of blue all across the town and surrounding land.  
"What'd I say? Ten. Seconds. Flat." Twilight looked utterly shocked.  
"You should see the look on your face," Rainbow said, laughing. "You're a laugh, Twilight Sparkle. I can't wait to hang out some more." Then she sped off, and Twilight looked annoyed. Then they headed to what Hunter assumed was the Town Hall.  
"Okay, decorations," Spike said. Hunter looked around. The place looked amazing.  
"Beautiful," Spike said, enraptured. Twilight thought he was talking about the décor, but he was actually talking about the pony doing the decorating, a white-coated unicorn with a purple, elegantly styled mane. She was picking from different kinds of ribbon, finally settling for a sparkling red one.  
"Sparkle always does the trick, does it not?" she asked no one. "Why, Rarity, you are a talent." Rarity turned to Twilight, and started to ask, "Now, how can I help yo-" yelping when she took in Twilight's appearance.  
"Oh my stars, darling! Whatever happened to your coiffure?!"  
"You mean my mane?" Twilight said, looking up at it. "It's a long story. I'm just here to check on the decorations and then I'll be out of your hair."

"Out of _my_ hair?" Rarity said, walking forward. "What about _your_ hair?" She then began to push Twilight out of the Town Hall towards what Hunter assumed to be a boutique. She fixed Twilight's mane, then started making Twilight try on different outfits, finally settling on a jeweled corset like attire from what Hunter could gather.  
"Now go on, my dear," Rarity said, placing her front hooves on Twilight's back, preparing to tighten the outfit, "you were telling me where you're from."  
"I've… been sent… from… Canterlot… to…" she said, wincing from the tightness of the outfit, but then Rarity let go.  
"Canterlot!?" Rarity shouted, excitedly.  
"Oh, I am so envious! The glamour, the sophistication! I've always _dreamed_ of living there!" she said. Hunter facepalmed for the second time that day. Rarity was evidently one of those women who had a taste for the finer things, rather than the simpler life like Applejack. Then Rarity said that she and Twilight were going to be the best of friends, which Twilight obviously dreaded.  
" _Emeralds_? What _was_ I thinking? Let me get you some rubies!" she said, and went off to get them. Twilight then grabbed Spike and ran out of the boutique.  
"Quick! Before she decides to dye my coat a new color," she said as she ran. Hunter followed. Spike was still in a love-struck daze.  
"Wasn't she wonderful?" he said. Twilight rolled her eyes, then asked what was next. Apparently, the last thing on the list was music Then all three of them heard a sound. It was a chorus of songbirds being conducted by a blond-coated Pegasus pony with a long light pink mane and tail. The music was beautiful, but one bird seemed to be having trouble.  
"Um, stop please, everyone," she said in a soft voice, and the birds stopped singing. She flew over to the blue bird and said, "Excuse me sir, no offense or anything, but it seems your rhythm is just a teeny-tiny bit off." The bird nodded, which surprised Hunter, and the pony was about to start them again, but Twilight spoke up, startling the pony and the birds. The pony flew down, and looked at Twilight shyly.  
"Oh, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to frighten your birds. I'm just here to check up on the music, and it's sounding beautiful," she said. The other pony said nothing.  
"I'm Twilight Sparkle," Twilight introduced. The other pony still didn't say anything.  
"What's your name?" Twilight asked.  
"Um… I'm…" the last part came out as a murmur.  
"I'm sorry, what was that?" Twilight asked.  
"Um… My name is…." this time the other pony's voice was even quieter. Twilight asked her to repeat it again, and this time the other pony's voice came out as a small squeak. She then appeared to be hiding her face in her mane.

Then the birds returned and Twilight turned to Spike, and they were about to leave, then the other pony noticed him, and got excited, rushing over and knocking Twilight into some bushes.  
"A baby dragon! I've never seen a baby dragon before. He's _so_ cute!" she said. Even when she got excited, her voice was soft.  
"Well, well, well…!" Spike said, looking smugly at Twilight.  
"Oh, my, he talks. I didn't know dragons could talk. That's just so incredibly wonderful, I don't even know what to say!" the pony said happily. Hunter had to admit, she was pretty cute.  
"Well, in that case, we'd better be going," Twilight said, levitating Spike over onto her back. The other pony followed them though, and asked, "Wait wait! What's his name?"  
"I'm Spike," he said.  
"Hi, Spike. I'm Fluttershy," she said, and then the two preceded to talk about the events of Spike's whole entire life up until the present day. As it turned out, Twilight had been required to hatch Spike out of his egg as part of an entrance exam for Princess Celestia's magic school, but she had nearly failed until the sound of a large explosion of some sort startled her into not only hatching Spike, but surrounding the examiners in a force field and growing Spike into a fully grown dragon. Celestia had seen this, and stopped Twilight's magic from going completely out of control. Twilight had then earned something called a "cutie mark" which Hunter guessed was the star-like marking on her flank. He noticed that Fluttershy's was three pink butterflies. Thinking back, he remembered that almost every pony he had seen around town that day had had a mark of some kind on their flank, but no two marks were the same. Applejack's had been three red apples, Rarity's had been three jewels, and Rainbow Dash's had been a cloud with a lightning bolt styled rainbow coming down from it. Finally, they came to a tree with windows in it as well as a balcony with a telescope on the top and a door. Hunter guessed that this was the library where Twilight would be staying while in Ponyville. Twilight went in along with Spike, and shut the door. Hunter wasn't able to get in before the door shut though, and decided to just lay against the tree and try and collect himself. He was exhausted from following Twilight all day. He sat back against the wood, and looked up at the setting sun, watching the moon rise into the sky.

He noticed something odd about it. The moon had a dark shape on it that resembled a mare's head with a long unicorn horn.  
"That must be the Mare in the Moon that Twilight was reading about back in Canterlot," Hunter said to himself quietly. He watched the moon, and seemed to notice four stars getting closer to the moon bit by bit.  
 _What did the passage from Twilight's book say?_ he thought, then he remembered, ' _Legend has it that on the longest day of the thousandth year, the stars shall aid in her escape, and she will bring about everlasting night._ ' He then found himself hoping that his trip here was just a false alarm. Then again, everytime he had been called to another world, his help had always been needed in some way, be it large or small. He would have pondered on this further, but he fell asleep against the tree.

He woke up pretty quickly though once he heard the thundering. He jumped up, eyes widening, and looked up at the moon. Sure enough, the Mare in the Moon was gone. He looked towards the Town Hall, and heard a maniacal laugh. He ran towards it, and threw down the invisibility spell. He then noticed that he was running on four legs! He had turned into a pony as he slept. Then he looked at his sides, and saw two wings. He had become a Pegasus. Deciding to use this to his advantage, he leapt into the air, spread his wings, and burst through the door as he heard Nightmare Moon asking, "Did you not see the signs?"  
"I did!" he heard Twilight yell.  
"So did I!" he shouted. "And we both know who you are."  
"You're the Mare in the Moon," Twilight started.  
"Nightmare Moon," they finished together. Everypony gasped.  
"Well well well, someponies who remember me. Then you also know why I'm here," she said. Then Hunter took in her full appearance. A full sized horse, with a black coat and a flowing mane that looked like the night sky, she was taller than any pony in the whole room, and twice as intimidating.  
"You're here to… to…" Twilight couldn't finish her sentence, she was so nervous. She gulped, and Nightmare Moon went on, "Remember this day, little ponies, for it was your last. From this moment forth, the night will last _forever_!" She laughed loudly, and thunder rolled again. Twilight looked nervous, and Hunter felt the same. How in the world could he take on a foe powerful enough to make it so that night would never end?

TO BE CONTINUED…


	2. Chapter 2: A New World, part 2

Chapter 2: A New World, part 2

 **A/N: My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic is owned by Hasbro. The only part of this that I own is my OC. Also, I'm going to be writing the rest of this fanfiction in first person. If there is an episode you would like to see me write, leave a review. Also, there will not be romance in this fanfic at all, so don't bother asking. Even if it seems implied, it isn't.**

Nightmare Moon's laugh echoed around us as her starry mane swirled around.  
"Seize her! Only she knows where the princess is!" a bespectacled mare shouted, and several armored pegasi flew at Nightmare Moon.  
"Stand back, you foals!" she shouted, and repelled them easily, then she turned into purple smoke, and flew off. Rainbow Dash, who was being held in place by Applejack biting onto her tail, suddenly broke free, and tried to fly after her.  
"COME BACK HERE!" she shouted, but Nightmare Moon was too fast. Twilight ran out of the town hall, and I went after her. She arrived back at the library, and I saw the other four ponies from earlier, plus a fifth pony with a curly pink mane and three balloons on her flank. I listened as hard as he could through the window as Twilight tore through the books.  
"How can I stop Nightmare Moon without the Elements of Harmony?" she asked aloud.  
"And just what _are_ the Elements of Harmony?!" Rainbow Dash's voice came through the glass. "And how did _you_ know about Nightmare Moon? Are you a _spy_?" Then Applejack yanked her tail again.  
"Simmer down, Sally," she said. "She ain't no spy. But she sure knows what's goin' on, don't ya Twilight?"  
"Don't forget me," I said as he cantered into the library.  
"Hi there!"  
"Woah!" I cried as the pink pony popped out of nowhere right in my face.  
"I'm Pinkie Pie. Who are you?" she asked.  
"I think all of us would like to know that," Rarity said. Rainbow Dash glared at me suspiciously.  
"I'll give the whole story later, but long story short, I came to Equestria earlier today, and I heard Twilight read about the prediction of Nightmare Moon's return, and about the Elements of Harmony. However, her account was seriously uninformed about them," he said.  
"He's right," Twilight said. "The Elements of Harmony are the only things that can defeat Nightmare Moon, but I don't know what they are, where to find them. I don't even know what they _do_!"  
"The Elements of Harmony; A Reference Guide," Pinkie read out. Twilight rushed over, knocking her away.  
"How did you find that?" she asked.  
"It was under E," Pinkie sang out. Hunter laughed a bit. Twilight glared at him for a bit, then opened the book.  
"There are 7 Elements of Harmony, but only 5 are known: Kindness, Laughter, Honesty, Generosity and Loyalty. The sixth and seventh are a complete mystery. The last known location of the Elements of Harmony was in the Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters," she read out. None of them noticed a wisp of purple smoke shoot off from the window.  
"It is located in what is now…" Hunter read out. The other five ponies gulped.  
"The Everfree Forest," they said nervously. They quickly found themselves at the very edge of said forest. At first glance, I didn't see what was so bad about it.  
"Well, let's go!" Pinkie said. Then Twilight spoke up, "Wait. Listen, I appreciate the offer, but I'd really rather do this on my own."  
"No way, no how," I said. "You honestly think you could take on Nightmare Moon by yourself?"  
"Yeah, or anything else that might be a-lurkin' in there," Applejack said. "No can do, Sugarcube. We certainly ain't lettin' any friend of ours go into that creepy place alone. We're stickin' to you like caramel on a candy apple."  
"Especially if there's candy apples in there," Pinkie said. Twilight and I stared at her, dumbfounded.  
"What? Those things are good," she said, and trotted inside. I just sighed and shook my head.  
"Come on," I said, and Twilight sighed too. Together, we entered the Everfree Forest.

We had been trotting along for a while, then Twilight voiced the question that was on both of our minds, "So, none of you have ever been in here before?"  
"Heavens, no," Rarity answered. "Just look at it. It's dreadful." She was clearly scared.  
"And it ain't natural," Applejack added. "Folks say it don't work the same way as Equestria.  
"What does that mean?" I asked, starting to feel a little creeped out.  
" _Nopony knows_ ," Rainbow Dash said in a creepy voice, crouching and advancing on Fluttershy, Rarity and Pinkie Pie. "You want to know why?"  
"Rainbow, quit it!" Applejack chided.  
"Yeah, come on Rainbow Dash, cut it out!" I threw in.  
"'Cause everypony who's ever come in, has never. Come. OUT!" she said, shouting the last word. Just then, the ground beneath them gave way into a landslide towards a steep cliff. In a moment of panic, I leapt into the air, and found that I could still fly, even though I wasn't a Pegasus pony.  
"FLUTTERSHY! QUICK!" Rainbow Dash shouted, not noticing me. She and Fluttershy flew down, and grabbed Pinkie Pie and Rarity. Applejack managed to grab a branch with her teeth, but Twilight slid to the edge, nearly falling over. Applejack saw, and slid down toward her. I flew over to help Fluttershy lower Rarity to safety, as the meek Pegasus was clearly having trouble. Then I flew back up, and saw Applejack was grasping onto Twilight, which was odd considering they didn't have hands.  
"Applejack, what do I do?" Twilight asked, panicking. Then Applejack looked up, and saw Rainbow Dash and I fly down the cliffside.  
"Let go," she said.  
"What?! Are you crazy!?" Twilight yelled at her.  
"No I ain't. I promise you'll be safe," she said.  
"That's not true!" Twilight was starting to get ticked."  
"Now listen here, what I'm sayin' to you is the honest truth. Let go, and you'll be safe," I felt an odd twinge within me as she said that. Then, Twilight let go. She screamed for a bit as she fell, then Rainbow Dash and I swooped in and caught her. Rainbow Dash then registered that I was flying, despite not having wings. She nearly lost her grip on Twilight, but she quickly grabbed hold again. Then they noticed Applejack jumping down the rocky outcrops of the cliff to the bottom. Rainbow and I set Twilight down, and I planted all four hoofs on the ground again.  
"How did you do that?" Rainbow asked.  
"I'll explain later. Let's go," I said, and we started walking again. Rainbow kept recounting what had just happened. Suddenly our path was blocked by a giant shape.  
"A manticore!" Twilight shouted, and the beast roared. Sure enough, it was a manticore. It had the body and head of a lion, but it had bat wings on its back and a scorpion tail. It reared up and let out a loud roar.  
"We've got to get past him!" I shouted, and everypony except Fluttershy got ready to fight. The manticore leapt at Rarity, and swiped a paw at her. She ducked, and bucked him in the muzzle with her back hooves.  
"Take that, you ruffian!" she shouted at him, grinning, then he roared in her face. The roar caused her mane to frizz up, and she ran off.  
"Wait," Fluttershy whispered. I was next. I got up onto my hind legs and began punching at the manticore with my front hooves. The manticore recoiled from each blow, and I grinned. Then I threw a blow at his gut, but the manticore brought its tail out from behind it, and knocked it into y side before I even knew what happened. It didn't sting me, luckily, but it knocked the wind out of me just long enough for the manticore to bat me aside.  
"Wait," Fluttershy said again, but no one heard her. Then, Applejack leapt into the air, and landed on top of the manticore's head. She grabbed onto its mane, and the manticore began to jump and run about like a bronco, trying to knock Applejack off.  
"Yeehaw! Get along little doggy!" Applejack shouted, seeming to be having fun, then the manticore succeeded in shaking his unwelcome rider off, and sending her through the air.  
"All yours, partner," she said to Rainbow Dash.  
"Wait!" Fluttershy said, louder this time, but Rainbow didn't hear her.  
"Is this yours?" I said, holding up Applejack's hat. Applejack took it back, and put it back on her head.  
"Thanks," she said. Then we saw what Rainbow Dash was trying to do. She appeared to be trying to make the manticore dizzy by flying at top speed around it, making a rainbow-colored funnel, but the manticore batted her back with its tail.  
"Rainbow!" Twilight and I shouted together as Rainbow Dash slid to a stop in front of us. She got back up, and all six of us got ready to charge at the manticore. Then we moved. We were only a few feet away from him, when…  
"WAIT!" Fluttershy shouted, in the loudest tone I had heard from her since I arrived. Then she went up to the manticore, and held a hoof out toward its paw, the manticore growled, but Fluttershy shushed quietly.  
"It's okay," she said, softly, stroking its paw. The manticore lifted the paw up, and opened it up, revealing a large thorn in it.  
"You poor little baby," she said to it.  
"Little?" Rainbow Dash said, incredulously.  
"Baby?" I added.  
"Now this may hurt for just a second," Fluttershy said, then pulled the thorn out. The manticore grabbed her, and roared in her face.  
"Fluttershy!" we shouted, terrified, but the manticore wasn't hurting Fluttershy at all. It was purring and licking her face like a kitten. Fluttershy just giggled, and comforted it. I smiled, and felt the same twinge as before. They passed the manticore, and it set Fluttershy back on the ground. Her mane was stuck in a fashion that made it look like she was in a gale force wind or something.  
"How did you know about the thorn?" Twilight asked.  
"I didn't," she said as she walked past her. "Sometimes we all just need to be shown a little kindness." I just grinned and shook my head, and we continued on.

After a while, Rarity groaned, "My eyes need a rest from all this icky muck." No sooner had she said that then we passed under a thick section of the forest canopy, and it went pitch dark.  
"Well I didn't mean that literally," she said. We stumbled around for a bit, not knowing where we all were for a second. I felt someone bump into me, "Sorry," and I bumped into someone else, "Couldn't see you there." Then I heard Applejack say, "I think I stepped in something." Then Fluttershy screamed.  
"It's just mud," Applejack said, then smacked into something. She looked up and saw a terrifying face snarling down at her. She screamed, and we found ourselves surrounded by them. I'll admit I felt scared a bit too, but I didn't scream like the others did. The only other one who didn't was Pinkie. In fact, I looked around for her, and saw her making silly faces at one, and laughing.  
"Pinkie, what are you doing?" I asked.  
"Run!" Twilight yelled.  
"Oh guys, don't you see?" she said, and I heard music from somewhere

(Bold=Pinkie singing)

 **When I was a little filly and the sun was going down…**

"Tell me she's not…" Twilight started, but was cut off by Pinkie:

 **The darkness and the shadows they would always make me frown…**

"She is," Rarity and I said together.

 **I'd hide under my pillow**

 **From what I thought I saw**

 **But Granny Pie said that wasn't the way**

 **To deal with fears at all**

"Then what is?" Rainbow Dash asked.

 **She said, "Pinkie, you've gotta stand up tall,**

 **Learn to face your fears,**

 **You'll see that they can't hurt you, just**

 **Laugh to make them disappear!"**

"Ha! Ha! Ha!" she said, and the face on one tree vanished in a puff of smoke. We all caught on, and smiled as Pinkie's little ditty continued **:**

 **So, giggle at the ghostly**

 **Guffaw at the grossly**

 **Chortle at the kooky**

 **Snortle at the spooky**

 **Crack up at the creepy**

 **Woof it up with the weepy**

 **And tell that big dumb scary face to take a hike and leave you alone and if he thinks he can scare you he's got another thing coming and the very idea of such a thing just makes you want to…**

Pinkie broke off in a burst of giggles then, and as she hit the last note of the song, all the faces on the trees disappeared.

 **L** **aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaauuugh!**

I couldn't help it. None of us could. We flopped onto the grass, and laughed. We laughed and laughed until I felt like I was going to cough up my lungs. We got up, and continued on, some of us still suffering slight giggling aftershocks. Pinkie was in the lead, hopping along, but she abruptly stopped. We all collided with each other, and when we recovered, we looked past her, and saw that the river in front of us was a swirl of rapids.

"How are we going to cross _this_?" Pinkie asked. Just then, we heard crying a little ways upstream. We followed the sound, and peered through the bushes. My eyes widened. There, in the middle of the river, was a large, purple sea serpent. He was sobbing and thrashing his coils around, creating the rapids.

"What a world, what a world!" he shouted, slamming his fists into the water. I gulped a bit, and then walked forward. I looked up at him, and said, "Excuse me, Mister…"  
The serpent looked down at me, and sniffed, then said, "Steven, Steven Magnet."

"Excuse me, Steven, but why are you crying?" I asked. The others came up next to me and looked up at him, not fazed at all by him.

"Oh, I don't know," he said, sounding a bit miffed. "I was just sitting here, minding my own business, when this… tacky little cloud of purple smoke just _whisked_ past me, and tore half of my beloved moustache…" he bent down and pointed to the other half of his facial hair, which was noticeably shorter than the other half, "clean off! And now, I look simply _horrid_!" He shouted the last half, and splashed down into the water, drenching all of us.

"Are you kidding me?" Rainbow asked.

"You cannot be serious right now," I said, putting a hoof against my forehead.

"That's what all the fuss is about?" Applejack said, then Rarity shot between all of us, her mane soaking wet, and said, "Why of course it is! How can you be so insensitive?" She turned her chin up at us as she said that, then walked over to Steven.

"Just look at him," she said, then began stroking his scales. "Such lovely luminescent scales!"

"I know," Steven sniffed, then Rarity looked up at his hair.

"And your expertly quaffed mane," she said. Steven reared back, and ran a hand over his hair, saying, "Oh, I know, I know!"

"And your _fabulous_ manicure!" Rarity complimented.

"It's so _true_!" Steven said.

"All of it _ruined_ without your _beautiful_ moustache," she said. Steven was sent into a crying fit again as he shouted, "It's true! I'm hideous!" Rarity's eyes narrowed as she declared, "I simply cannot let such a crime against fabulosity go uncorrected!" Then she bit at Steven's scales, and jerked one off.

"OW! What did you do that for?" Steven asked. Rarity raised the scale in her mouth, the edge gleaming like a sharp blade.

"Rarity, what are you…" Twilight started to ask, but the next second, everyone's eyes grew wide as a slashing sound reverberated through the forest, and Steven fell over. Rarity's luxuriously curled tail lay on the ground, a short tuft of it remaining on her rump. She dropped the scale, and used her magic to levitate it over to Steven Magnet, twisting it around the stump of the other half of his mustache. He saw it, and reared up again, laughing this time.

"My moustache! How wonderful!" he said, admiring it in the reflection of the water, which was much calmer.

"You look smashing," Rarity said. Twilight looked at Rarity's tail with concern, and Rarity assured her it was no problem, though I could tell it bothered her. Steven allowed us to cross the water by hopping over the humps of his body in the water. We crossed quickly, and made our way along the path again. Twilight was in the lead this time. I was behind her, and the others were behind me, with Applejack and Pinkie at the rear, and Rainbow Dash behind me. Then, Twilight stopped, and up ahead, we could see the ruins of an old castle.

"That has to be the place!" I said, a smile stretching over my face.

"You're right, Hunter!" Twilight shouted, and ran forward, but her front hooves slipped over the edge of a cliff. Rainbow shot forward, grabbed onto Twilight's tail with her teeth, and pulled her back onto firm ground.

"What's with you and falling off cliffs today?" I asked. Then we looked over the edge. The rope bridge that once led to the castle was now hanging off its ropes on our side. Obviously, the ropes had either come loose or snapped at some point.

"What do we do now?" Pinkie asked.

"Duh," Rainbow said, and twitched the feathers of her wings. She flew down into the misty canyon, and flew back up with the other ends of the ropes in her mouth. We cheered, and she tied one end off, and was about to tie the other, but something stopped her. I couldn't make it out, but I saw what looked like three ponies with Rainbow Dash. They were gesturing and apparently talking, and Rainbow at one point shot up like she was excited, and made to tie off the other rope, when I could finally make out some of what they were saying.

"Just let me tie this bridge real quick and then we have a deal," she said, but one of them stopped her.  
"No! It's _them_ or us!" the pony said. Twilight saw them, and I got a bad feeling in my gut. The ponies in front of Rainbow were dressed like darker versions of the Wonderbolts, but I knew what they were. They were Nightmare Moon, split into three entities. The pony's eyes flashed, and the fog began closing in.  
"Don't listen to them, Rainbow!" I shouted, but now I couldn't see Rainbow Dash or hear her. Fortunately, we didn't have to wait long. Rainbow came flying through the fog, clearing it away, and the bridge was completely tied off. We crossed over, and Rainbow said to us, "See? I'd never leave my friends hangin'!" That odd twinge happened again, but stronger. We entered the ruins of the castle, and saw a large pedestal with five round stones on it. Each one had a specific place, and each one had a hexagonal gem outline on it.

"The Elements of Harmony!" I said, surprised.

"We found them!" Twilight said, and Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy flew up, bringing each one down, and setting them in a circle.

"One, two, three, four…" Pinkie counted, but then broke off, looking confused. "There's only five!"

"Where are the other two?" Rainbow asked.

"The book said, 'When the five are present, and the sixth has made itself known, a spark will cause the seventh element to be revealed'," Twilight said, and aimed her horn at the stones.

"Stand back, I don't know what will happen," she said. The others left the room, but I stayed put. A bad feeling was growing in my gut, and it told me to stay where I was. Twilight closed her eyes, and began to focus. I didn't dare move, or even breathe. Then a cloud of purple smoke entered, and the elements began swirling in a circle, faster and faster.

"Look out!" I shouted. Twilight opened her eyes, and saw the swirling smoke too.

"TWILIGHT! HUNTER!" I heard the others yell outside. Then, Twilight and I leapt into the smoke, and in a flash of light, we were teleported into what looked like one of the castle's towers. I rubbed my head, and then I looked over, and saw Twilight getting to her hooves. Then, we saw Nightmare Moon. She had the five elements around her on the ground. Twilight and I dug our hooves into the ground.

"You're kidding," Nightmare Moon said, looking at us mockingly. "You're kidding, right?"

Then, Twilight ran forward, her horn glowing brightly. Nightmare Moon ran towards us, and seemed to be charging a spell of her own. Twilight's was quicker, though, and she disappeared in a burst of light, reappearing in front of the Elements of Harmony. She groaned a bit, and began focusing her magic again.

"No!" Nightmare Moon cried, and began to run towards her, but I charged forward, and threw a hoof at the winged unicorn's face. It struck right in her muzzle, and forced her back into a pillar.

"Twilight, do it!" I shouted.

"Hunter!" she cried, seeing that I was now fighting Nightmare Moon. Nightmare Moon threw beams of energy at me, but I somehow managed to evade them, and I managed to land a couple of hoofblows here and there, and at one point, I managed to land a headbutt on her flank.

"Focus on the spell!" I shouted.

"You don't seem frightened by me," Nightmare Moon said.

"Oh, believe me," I said. "I'm terrified of you, but being brave isn't the same thing as not being scared. It's being afraid, but finding the strength to do what you know is right in your heart!" Suddenly, Twilight was blasted into me with a yelp. We crashed into the floor, and Nightmare Moon rushed towards the Elements, which apparently weren't responding. Then, she brought her hooves down, and shattered them into shards of rock.

"No," I said under my breath. We'd come so far, and we were stopped now? That was it, it was over.

"The night shall last forever!" Nightmare Moon shouted, laughing as lightning flashed. Then, Twilight and I heard voices, and another stone orb appeared, but quickly fell apart. It had a gem outline on it too, however. The voices came closer, and I realized whose they were. It was the others! They'd found the tower. Twilight's eyes widened, and I thought I saw a spark go off in them.

"You think you can destroy the Elements of Harmony just like that?" she cried, turning to Nightmare Moon, a broad grin on her face as the others came in, and we all took our stance behind Twilight. "Well you're wrong, because the _spirits_ of the Elements of Harmony… are right _here_!" The shards began to levitate into the air.

"What?" Nightmare Moon breathed, as Twilight began to speak again, "Applejack, who reassured me when I was in doubt, represents the spirit of… Honesty!" Some of the shards flew around her, floating in a circle.

"Fluttershy, who tamed the manticore with her compassion, represents the spirit of…Kindness!"

More shards floated around her, and they eventually grouped around the others as well.

"Pinkie Pie, who banished fear by giggling in the face of danger, represents the spirit of… Laughter!"

Pinkie looked excited just then.

"Rarity, who calmed a sorrowful serpent with a meaningful gift, represents the spirit of… Generosity! Rainbow Dash, who could not abandon her friends for her own heart's desire, represents the spirit of… Loyalty! And Hunter, who faced a foe stronger than himself in spite of his fears, represents the spirit of the sixth element…Bravery!"

The shards of the other element that appeared swirled around me, but I got over my shock, and grinned at Nightmare Moon, my eyebrows furrowed in defiance as Twilight finished, "The spirits of these six ponies got us through every challenge you threw at us!"

"You still don't have the seventh Element!" Nightmare Moon cried out, desperately. "The spark didn't work!"

"But it did!" Twilight said. "A different _kind_ of spark!" Then she turned to us all, and said, "I felt it the moment I realized how happy I was to hear you, to _see_ you, how much I _cared_ about you, when I realized that you all…" she turned back to face Nightmare Moon as she finished, "…are _my_ _friends_!" Then, a bright glow appeared above us, and a stone with a gem imprint in the shape of Twilight's cutie mark appeared. Nightmare Moon had to use her wing to block her eyes from the light of it.

"You see, Nightmare Moon," Twilight said as it descended towards her, "when those Elements are ignited by the…the _spark_ that resides in the heart of us all, it creates the seventh Element, the Element of… _Magic!_ " Then, the last Element shined again, and the shards around us transformed. I couldn't tell right away, because I was focused on subconsciously channeling the power of my Element, and then a rainbow burst out from us, and surrounded Nightmare Moon.

"Nooo!" she shouted as the rainbow swirled around her in a rapid tornado. My eyes closed, and I heard something that I can't describe, even if I lived to be as old as Princess Celestia. The next thing I knew, we were all sprawled out on the floor.

"My head," I heard Rainbow say as I got up.

"Everypony okay?" Applejack asked, and I heard Rarity cry out with glee. I looked over, and I saw that her tail had grown back.

"Why Rarity, it's so lovely," Fluttershy said.

"I know," Rarity said, waving her tail in the air. "I'll never part with it again!" She nestled it near her face.

"No, your necklace," Fluttershy said, and gestured to Rarity's new jewelry. It was golden, and the gem in the middle was shaped like a diamond, and was purple. "It looks just like your cutie mark." I noticed that everyone except me and Twilight had them. I looked, and then saw that mine was on a gold band that was snapped around my front right foreleg. It was shaped like the outline of a human figure, and it was colored green.

"Gee, Twilight," Applejack said. "I thought you were just spoutin' a lot of hooey, but I reckon we really _do_ represent the Elements of Friendship."

"Indeed you do," another voice said, and then the moon went down, and the sun came up over the trees, shining in through a window. A bright light came from it, and when it faded, a regal looking winged unicorn appeared. Unlike Nightmare Moon, her coat and feathers were white. Her majestic mane was four separate colors, and it rippled of its own accord, along with her tail. On her flank was a picture of the sun. Everypony except Twilight bowed, so I just stood there.

"Princess Celestia!" Twilight cried, and ran over to her mentor, who gave her what I assume is the pony version of a hug.

"Twilight Sparkle, my most faithful student!" she said, smiling at her. "I knew you could do it."

"I don't understand," Twilight said, looking up at her. "You told me it was just an old pony tale."

"Actually, she said you needed to make some friends," I said, and Celestia nodded.

"I saw the signs of Nightmare Moon's return, and I knew that you, Twilight, had the magic inside to defeat her, but you could not unleash it until you had let true friendship into your heart," Celestia explained, then looked over to where Nightmare Moon had been, saying softly, "Now if only another will as well." I looked, and was shocked. Where Nightmare Moon had been, there was now a smaller winged unicorn with a lighter coat and mane color. Her flank showed a picture of a crescent moon, and a patch of night sky.

"Princess Luna," Celestia said, and the pony opened her eyes, looking slightly afraid. Celestia came up to her, looking wistful, and said, "It has been a thousand years since I have seen you like this. Time to put our differences behind us. We were meant to rule together, little sister."

"Sister?" the others said, surprised. I just rolled my eyes, as Celestia asked, "Will you accept my friendship?" We all leaned forward, looking anxious, and Pinkie fell over. I felt the anticipation, and then, Luna rushed forward, and nestled her head into Celestia's neck.

"I'm so sorry!" she said, tearing up a bit. "I missed you so much, big sister!" Celestia smiled down at her sister, her eyes also showing the shine of tears.

"I've missed you, too," she said. Pinkie then began to cry, but it was over pretty quickly.

"Hey! You know what this calls for?" she said, and no sooner were we back in Ponyville than she finished, shouting, "A party!" The town was still decorated for the Summer Sun Celebration, only now, it was to celebrate another occasion, the defeat of Nightmare Moon, and the return of Princess Luna. As soon as we were back, the festivities began. Spike came out of the crowd, and hugged Twilight. A wreath of flowers was placed around Luna's neck by two Pegasus fillies. She looked a bit surprised, but she smiled up at her sister. It was all great fun, but then I looked over at Twilight, and saw that she looked sad. Celestia noticed, too, and came over to her.

"Why so glum, my faithful student?" she asked, and I cut in, "Aren't you happy that you can go back to Canterlot to keep up your studies now?"

"That's just it," she said, and looked at us all. "Just when I discover how wonderful it is to have friends, I have to leave them." I had to admit, that was kind of a downer. The others thought so, too, and even Pinkie looked depressed.

"Spike, take a note, please," Celestia said, and Spike pulled out his quill.

"I, Princess Celestia, hereby decree that the unicorn, Twilight Sparkle, will take up a new mission for Equestria. She must continue to study the magic of friendship. She must report to me her findings from her new home…in Ponyville!" she said, and we all beamed. Then we all gathered Twilight up in a big group hug.

"All right!" I shouted.

"Thank you, Princess Celestia. I'll study harder than ever before!" she said. Then the hug broke off as the festival went on. Then I remembered something.

"Uh, Twilight," I said, looking sheepish.

"What is it, Hunter?" she asked me.

"Um, is it cool if I live with you and Spike? I don't exactly have a home here," I explained, scraping at the dirt with my hoof. Twilight just smiled at me, and answered, "Of course you can. What are friends for?"

I couldn't help it, I smiled too. Now, I've been to a lot of different worlds before, but this one… this one felt different to me. I felt I had finally found here what I had been searching for my whole life: a place I could truly call home.


End file.
